Charitable giving in D.C. is well below the national average

The District is a magnet for some of the nation’s wealthiest and most powerful people. It’s also home to world-class museums, top-flight thinkers and the national headquarters for many of our nation’s most prominent nonprofits.

But even with these tremendous resources, we are conspicuously behind the curve when it comes to one important measure: generosity.

In fact, when you look at the data, our community is punching well below its weight when it comes to charitable giving. The District is failing to properly take care of our neighbors who need it most.

A common measure of philanthropy for individuals is the giving ratio. It’s a simple calculation: charitable contributions as a share of total adjusted gross income. And, unfortunately, the numbers paint a sobering picture. According to the Chronicle of Philanthropy’s most recent analysis of Internal Revenue Service data, those living in the Washington metro area give just 2.9 percent of their income to charity. This means our region gives at a rate below the national average (3.3 percent). We even give below the rates of neighboring cities such as Baltimore (3 percent) and Richmond (3.1 percent).